PAPER CLIPS

When the mostly Christian and Caucasian middle-school students of tiny Whitwell, Tenn., begin studying the history of the Holocaust, they struggle to understand the concept of six million murdered Jews. In an attempt to grasp the totality of the horror, they begin collecting paper clips: one for each victim. But once NBC News and the Washington Post pick up the story, the project takes on a life of its own; boxes of paper clips and heartfelt letters start pouring in from around the nation, and soon, the world. Two German journalists even track down a Holocaust-era railcar, which now houses the clips and serves as a memorial in Whitwell. But Joe Fab and Elliot Berlin's documentary succeeds not only as a poignant history lesson: It's also an inspirational and often tear-jerking call-to-arms. If mere children can affect an entire community, the film seems to say, just think of the change the rest of us could inspire. Manor (DE)